Han Ni fell for a pig butchering scam — a mash-up of romance and investment schemes run by Asia-based online scam syndicates. She reveals how scammers first developed an emotional intimacy by showing concern for her over a prolonged period. They then brainwashed her into investing in a fake platform despite her doubts. They also told her not to tell her loved ones about the platform when instructed to borrow money from them. “It’s not because I’m too dumb, it’s just because (the scammers) are too good,” said Han Ni. Scammers often work in teams of four or five just to target one victim. They develop psychologically manipulative conversation scripts tailored to each victim through detailed analysis of the victim’s chat behaviour and social media. By sharing her story, Han Ni hopes to expose their tactics to prevent others from falling for them.
